NSW has come top of the economic rankings in CommSec's State of the States report for the July quarter, increasing the gap that sets it ahead of the other states and territories.
NSW ranked highest on population growth, retail trade and dwelling starts and placed second on unemployment and equipment investment, even though its other rankings were housing finance (third), construction work (fourth) and economic growth (fifth).
The report stated NSW was leading in performance because of its population growth, resulting in more homes being built and bought and lifting retail spending.
CommSec included a new indicator of motor vehicle registrations in the study which also highlighted the top performance of the state.
The top three economies also ranked top three on new car registrations (sales), with Victoria in second place and the Northern Territory coming third.
Although Victoria is being strengthened by similar channels of population growth and housing activity, the manufacturing sector is 'restraining momentum of the broader economy' the report claims.
In the Northern Territory, the strength of activity in the gas sector is underpinning equipment investment and overall construction activity but the difficulty in attracting workers remains a challenge.
The remaining states were ranked Western Australia (fourth), Queensland as fifth, followed by the ACT (sixth), South Australia (seventh) and Tasmania (eighth).
The report is released each quarter CommSec and analyses eight key indicators: economic growth; retail spending; equipment investment; unemployment; construction work done; population growth; housing finance and dwelling commencements.
